SEXUAL HARASSMENT AT WORKPLACE

Sexual harassment at a workplace is considered a violation of women’s right to equality, life, and liberty. It creates an insecure and hostile work environment, which discourages women’s participation in work, thereby adversely affecting their social and economic empowerment and the goal of inclusive growth. With this idea, the legislature formulated the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013.

The need for such legislation was observed first time by the Supreme Court, in Vishaka v State of Rajasthan. In the absence of any law at that time providing measures to check the evil of sexual harassment of working women, the Supreme Court, in the exercise of power available under Article 32 of the Constitution, framed guidelines to be followed at all workplaces or institutions, until legislation is enacted for the purpose. The Supreme Court incorporated basic principles of human rights enshrined in the Constitution of India under Article 14, 15, 19(1)(g) and 21, and provisions of the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which has been ratified in 1993 by the Government of India. The guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court were to be treated as the law declared under Article 141 of the Constitution.

Definition of Sexual Harassment?

Section:2(n) of the POSH act describe sexual harassment as unwelcome facts or behavior whether or not or now no longer immediately or through Manner of way implication namely:

• Physical contact or advances
• A name for or request for sexual favors,
• Making sexually colored remarks,
• Showing pornography a few different unwelcome physicals,
• Verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature.

Definition of workplace

An administrative center is defined as any place visited the employee springing up out of or at a few degrees withinside the course of employment, collectively within transportation provided the agency for the project this kind of journey. As in keeping with this definition, a place of work covers every organized and unorganized sector. It more ever includes all locations of work whether or not or no longer owned with the resources of the use of Indian or distant places corporation having an administrative middle in India.

Two types of forms of sexual harassment

Quid-pro-quo: This for that

Someone in a position of power demands a sexual favor in exchange for a benefit or for not imposing a negative consequence.

Hostile work environment: includes except quid-pro-quo

Unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature or based on sex or gender so several or pervasive that it affects terms and conditions of employment to create a hospital or abuse work environment.

             DEVELOPMENT OF LAW ON SEXUAL HARASSMENT IN INDIA

             Landmark judgment case Vishaka And org vs. the State of Rajasthan And Ors AIR 1997 SC 3011. The Vishaka judgment workplace sexual harassment in India come to be for the very first time recognized with resources of the use of the supreme court of India in its landmark judgment. Vishaka and one of the kind women filled public interest litigation in competition to the state of Rajasthan and the union of India to enforce the important fundamental rights of working women under Articles 14,19 and 21 of the constitution of India. The petition turns out to be filled after Bhanwari Devi a social worker in Rajasthan has become brutally gang-raped for stopping child marriage. The supreme court of India created legally binding hints basing it on the right to equality and dignity accorded under the Indian constitution further to the UN convention on the elimination of all forms of Discrimination in the direction of women(CEDAW).india finally enacted a law on prevention of sexual harassment against female employees at the workplace. The sexual harassment of women at the workplace(prevention, prohibition, and redressal)Act,2013 has been made effective on 23 April 2013 by way of publication in the Gazette of India. The judgment was given by 3 judge bench which held that the fundamental rights provided under Article 14,15,19(1)(g) and Article 21 of the constitution of India are violated by the act of sexual harassment.

           CONCLUSION

             Sexual harassment at the workplace is highly prevalent in India and there is a need to provide a positive environment to the women workers. Government should make separate laws dealing with this issue. It should also realize that women workers also constitute a part of the working population in India and the government must provide them security at work.

New strategies should be made by the employees and managers to protect the organization from this evil. Government and employers should ensure that women should be treated equally and gender discrimination should not take place in the workplace. Effective implementation of the policies can reduce the manifestation and mutilation of sexual harassment to the minimum. One organization can alter its approach to handle sexual harassment by viewing another organization’s tactic. This will reduce or eliminate glitches caused by this harmful transgression. Government should understand that separate laws may not bring about equality in gender relations but a law dealing with sexual harassment would provide women immense support in their struggle. At last, we want to say that women should not accept anything as it is because now it’s the time to speak out against all the injustice done to them.

Aishwarya Says:

I have always been against Glorifying Over Work and therefore, in the year 2021, I have decided to launch this campaign “Balancing Life”and talk about this wrong practice, that we have been following since last few years. I will be talking to and interviewing around 1 lakh people in the coming 2021 and publish their interview regarding their opinion on glamourising Over Work.

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